Anomaly Detected
by LadyWillow
Summary: When Shepard stumbles onto a planetary anomaly, old wounds are re-opened and the commander is forced to ask the age-old question "what if…?" Fem!Shep/Garrus. RATING CHANGED.
1. Chapter One

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Mass Effect. It belongs to Bioware.

**Summary:** When Shepard stumbles onto a planetary anomaly, old wounds are re-opened and the commander is forced to ask the age-old question "what if…?"

**Rating:** **T** for Jack's potty mouth and mild violence. Eventual **M** for hot xenophile lovin'.

**Anomaly Detected**

_Started 6-11-10_

_Written by LadyWillow_

Boredom was not something that Commander Jane Shepard handled very well. And after the assault on the Collector base, it was a pretty regular feeling.

Usually boredom meant one of two things. Someone was likely to get beat up, or there was about to be some serious, environmentally devastating planetary strip mining going down.

Right now, it was the strip mining.

"_Probe away."_ Sounded in the otherwise empty room, and Shepard leaned back in her desk chair with a yawn and stretch.

"_Probe launched."_

She rolled her head on her shoulders and hit the button again.

"_You have been scanning and probing these planets systematically for the past six hours, commander."_ Came EDI's reproachful chime, and Shepard responded by rapidly pressing the "probe" button over and over while sticking out her tongue.

Childish? Maybe, but it felt good.

"Is anyone bleeding or suffering from broken bones?"

"_No, commander."_

"Then trust me, this is what I need to be doing right now. Unless, of course, you and Joker want to take bets on how many punches it takes before Miranda goes down?"

Ah yes, XO abuse… another great way to pass a boring afternoon. Evening? Night? It was impossible to tell, which wasn't helping her mood in the slightest. Maybe it was time for some shore leave?

"_No thank you, commander."_ Came EDI's clipped tones, and Shepard gave a wry smile and another purposeful press of the "probe" key.

A pause.

"_Anomaly detected."_ Was it possible for an AI to sound surprised?

"Hnnng?" Shepard grunted, blinking rapidly and struggling to sit up straight to look at the screen.

"_I'm picking up a weak distress signal; it appears to be Alliance in origin. Playing encrypted message…"_

"_**Lost power to the **__–crackle-__** emergency landing **__–buzz-__** attack **__–beep-__** so many out there **__– whoosh-…"_

The radio faded into a static-y silence, and Shepard frowned, a thoughtful expression on her face.

"Why can't these things ever come in clear?" she grumbled, and punched the button for the ship's intercom system.

"_**Attention Normandy crew. We've detected a planetary anomaly. Miranda, Garrus, Jack and Grunt, report to the briefing room immediately."**_

Then she turned off the scanner, ending the fuzzy background noise abruptly, and left her quarters.

Well, at least she wasn't bored any more.


	2. Chapter Two

**Anomaly Detected**

_**Chapter Two**_

"I say fuck 'em. What has the Alliance done for us lately?" Jack shrugged one shoulder, and then looked directly at Miranda expectantly.

Ah, XO baiting… another of Shepard's favorite pastimes.

Of course, Miranda took the bait.

"We can't just leave them, commander."

"But we can't just charge in without knowing what we're up against either, can we?" Garrus pressed, and Grunt scoffed.

"If you had half the quads I do-"

"Well, technically-"

"Shut up, Turian. Rushing headlong into danger is the way we operate. Right Shepard?"

Great. Angry boyfriend or angry Krogan?

"We've definitely had it worse." She agreed, and gave Garrus an apologetic look.

The truth was, the vigilante had been fiercely protective (and also ungodly paranoid) ever since the night before the Collector base, something Shepard knew was not a coincidence.

"We don't have any other information?" Miranda asked, "No ground scans?"

"Atmosphere's too thick. If we buzz in low we might be able to get a reading, but by that point we might as well have just landed and taken a look." Shepard reasoned.

"Look, we'll take the shuttle in nice and quiet, once we're through the cloud cover, we don't like the look of things, we bail. But we can't just leave without trying." She held back from finishing that thought out loud, sure that adding_ 'this is the first somewhat interesting thing to happen in a week, and if I have to probe one more planet my fist is going to probe someone's face. Any volunteers?_' Prudence was key, after all.

"Right," Garrus agreed, "who's going to join us?"

Shepard barely hid her smile. The Turian's assumption of his involvement was to Shepard what receiving flowers were to a "normal" girl, and she blushed slightly. His eagerness to shed blood with her spoke volumes of his dedication and affection, in her mind.

"Jack, you up for a little exercise?"

Miranda pouted on the other side of the table, and Jack laughed.

"Hell yes! But if there isn't anything to shoot, those Alliance guys better watch their backs." She cackled, and Shepard rolled her eyes.

"Right, let's roll out. Meet in the hold in ten." She stated, then grabbed Garrus by the arm and dragged him from the room.

As they suited up, Garrus strategized.

"So I figure I go in first and wave in Jack, and then once it's clear you come in-"

"Hold it right there, buster." Shepard interrupted, stopping half way through putting her combat armor on in order to poke a self-righteous finger into his chest. "I've had just about enough of all this male posturing. I can take care of myself, and I don't need you to protect me like some delicate flower. Watch my back, but don't shelter me, Garrus." She stared into his eyes, and he put up his hands, taking a step back.

"Easy Shepard, I wasn't-"

"_Can it_." She hissed, and he deflated.

"I just don't want anything to happen to you. You're… very special to me." He murmured, mandibles tightening against his face in embarrassment.

"You're special to me, too, Garrus. But we need to be reasonable, here. There's still a chain of command. Outside of our bedroom I need to know that you're still going to follow orders, even if you don't like them. Especially if you don't like them."

"I understand, Shepard. Don't worry, I know who's boss," he moved past her to pick up his helmet, bumping his hip into hers and leering down at her, "at least during the day."

Shepard snorted, and gave him a "you wish" look just as Jack entered the room.

"Hey! Less fucking, more kicking ass!" she griped, and then left for the cargo hold, grumbling about horny Turians and her dominatrix commander.

"We better go," Garrus stated, "I hate it when she gets impatient. It's painful."

Shepard nodded, and together they headed for the shuttle.


	3. Chapter Three

**Anomaly Detected**

_**Chapter Three**_

"_ETA 15 minutes." _Sounded Joker's voice as the shuttle launched from the cargo hold. Shepard watched as Garrus expertly maneuvered the small craft toward the surface of the planet. As they drew closer, iridium deposits twinkled and glinted in the starlight, and Shepard rolled her eyes. _Now_ she could find it!

"Nice and quiet, Garrus." Shepard murmured, watching out the front viewport carefully.

"Yeah Turian, the exact opposite of when you-"

"Jack, I will break your face." Shepard said simply, and the other woman laughed, but fell silent. Good.

"Coming under cloud cover in just a minute." Garrus stated, eyes focused on the approaching surface.

"There we go, take a look commander." He advised, and both Shepard and Jack moved to get a better look out of the viewport. At first they couldn't see anything, and Shepard made an impatient sound, but as they dropped altitude, a mass was visible.

"Looks like a transport frigate," Jack commented, pointing uselessly, "see the shape there at the back?"

"Sure." Shepard mumbled, only half listening. The craft was definitely big, and black, billowing smoke was now visible. That thing wasn't getting back up into the air any time soon.

"Any sign of hostiles?" she asked, and Garrus shook his head. "No other ships in the area, and ground scans are finding isolated heat pockets, but it's all centered on the wreck. Nothing outlying."

"Great. Ambush?"

"I don't think so; see the placements there, and there? Too many blind spots. I think these are our survivors."

"Or it's bodies that are still warm." Jack pointed out helpfully, and Shepard smacked the other woman on the back of the head.

"Hey! Just speaking the truth over here."

"Colors too intense for still-warm dead bodies, Jack. Why are you always so morbid?" Shepard rolled her eyes, and Jack frowned.

"Oh, I don't know, try having Cerberus drug and systematically train you to kill other children, see where it takes 'ya." She snapped, and Garrus snorted.

"I'm going to land it over there, if that's okay with you, commander. Seems sheltered enough by those rock cliffs to the west, but open enough otherwise that we should be able to see anyone that's coming." Garrus pointed out as the ground rushed up toward them at a sickeningly fast pace.

"Good, do it." She confirmed, and began checking the buckles on her combat armor. "Now remember, initial atmosphere scans say the air is breathable, but it's been off a bit before, so have your masks ready. Computer seems to think we're Batarian sometimes." She grumbled, and Jack laughed.

"You know, I'm always so reassured about our dependence on technology at moments like this." She quipped, and made sure her mask was strapped to her waist where it was easily accessible.

Garrus brought the shuttle into a gentle landing, and after flipping a few switches turned in his seat to make eye contact with Shepard. "Open the doors?" he asked, his expression the equivalent of a human arching their eyebrow.

"Open 'em up." She verified, and Garrus turned, flipped two more switches, and with a click, then whoosh, the airlocks disengaged and the doors opened up slowly, letting in natural light and a faint spicy smell to the breeze.

"I'm not dying, so I think we're good with the air." Jack mumbled, earning another smack on the back of the head. She laughed, and Shepard gave her a push.

"Out, you're in my way."

"I'm going, I'm going."

Jack hit the ground first, pistol out as she scanned the area critically. Shepard hopped down next, shotgun at the ready, and she was followed by Garrus, who had his assault rifle in hand.

"Okay, let's head to the wreckage." Shepard stated, and they fell into an easy formation, Shepard at the front, flanked by Jack on the left and Garrus on the right. "Keep your eyes up and your head low." She called as they began to jog toward the caustic black smoke rising in the distance.

A few strangely shaped wild animals bounced around in the tree line, making Garrus jumpy. "Damn things…" he groused, and Shepard laughed.

"Don't shoot them. We don't need to draw any attention to ourselves." She stated, just before one of the creatures broke from the trees and came barreling toward them. It looked vaguely like an Earth bear crossed with a lizard, broad at the shoulders with a sweeping tail and scaly skin, and they skidded to a stop.

The creature let out an unholy snarl and charged.

"Can I shoot now?" Garrus quipped dryly, and Shepard answered by firing a spray of incendiary rounds into the advancing enemy. It went down easily, and they were silent for a moment.

"Those, you may shoot." She stated primly, then stepped over the smoking carcass and continued leading the way.


	4. Chapter Four

**Anomaly Detected**

_**Chapter Four**_

"We should be almost there; the smoke is just about directly overhead." Shepard commented, continuing to scan the area.

"You know, it's pretty around here. Wouldn't be a bad place for a few settlements, maybe a resort? Wonder why no one's done anything out here?" Jack mused, and Garrus shrugged.

"Well, maybe we're in luck. We'll get out of this dangerous lifestyle, settle down and make some credits in the hospitality market." He teased, and Shepard rolled her eyes, turning toward Garrus and Jack.

"You wish, just imagine how bored we'd get, sitting around all day." As she turned back around, she caught movement out of the corner of her eye. She raised her gun, only to skid to a stop.

A man in an Alliance uniform lay on the ground, one leg mutilated and a pistol just out of his reach.

"Oh thank God!" he exclaimed, and Shepard moved forward, already working her omni tool to access some medigel. She dropped to her knees and applied the cool cream, while taking in their new friend.

He was young, obviously new and probably barely eighteen. While his uniform was Alliance, it was not military grade. She met his almond colored eyes and gave him a reassuring smile.

"I'm Commander Shepard. This is Garrus Vakarian and Jack. Where are the other survivors?"

The man winced as he tried to sit up a bit better against the tree. "I'm Jackson. The others are at the camp, that way," he gestured with his head deeper into the trees, "I was on patrol, it caught me from behind. They're everywhere!" he dissolved into hysterical weeps and sobs, and Shepard awkwardly patted his arm.

"It's okay, we're uh… here to help." She soothed, looking back at Garrus helplessly. The Turian stepped forward.

"Who attacked you?"

The man looked up, eyes haunted and cheeks wet with tears.

"Not who, what." He corrected. "There are these…things! Scaly, massive things with huge teeth and a gigantic tail! They ambushed us when we landed and now they're picking us off one by one!"

Garrus and Shepard looked at each other, then at Jack, then back at each other again.

"Yeah, I uh, think we know what you're talking about. Ran into one about ten minutes ago." Shepard said with a shrug. Jackson looked at her like she was insane.

"You three… one of them… how are you _alive_?"

Shepard smiled and Garrus laughed.

"Boy, the Alliance sure is different then the last time I saw you guys." He laughed again, and Jackson stared.

"Most of us aren't soldiers; this was just a transport vessel! The XO could hardly get us to a defensible location before we were all eaten alive!"

"I understand, but it's just some local animal. One good blast of incendiary rounds put it right down. Everything's going to be okay." Shepard insisted.

"Are you sure we're talking about the same thing?" Jackson asked, expression skeptical.

"Sure. Bear-like, scaly thing, long tail, about 200, maybe 250 pounds."

"What?" Jackson asked, shaking his head rapidly, "No no, these things are-"

The air was suddenly filled with the putrid sent of rotting flesh and a keening snarl so ferocious that Shepard simultaneously wanted to cover her ears from the high pitched scream and pee her pants from the raw power of the roar.

Turning, another of the creatures was lumbering toward them, but it towered over the last, at least twelve feet tall at the shoulder, and weighing at maybe a ton.

"-much bigger!" Jackson finished, and Shepard stared.

"Holy mother of God!" she exclaimed, and then she started shooting.

Garrus opened fire as well, and Jack let loose her biotics.

"I think we pissed off mama!" she called, "nice work, commander!"

"Fuck you, Jack!" Shepard yelled back, dropping to one knee for a more steady shot. Garrus kicked the pistol on the ground toward Jackson, and jerked his head.

"You still have both arms, help us out." He demanded, and then returned to shooting, doing his best to aim at the massive head.

The creature drew close, and managed one good swipe that sent Shepard sailing over the ground to smash into a tree, before it finally went down with a mournful howling sound that was definitely able to be heard for miles. Great, that wouldn't call in more of them or anything.

Garrus rushed to where Shepard landed to see his commander sitting on the ground brushing off her combat armor. She had a deep scratch across her right cheek, and her armor looked dinged up, but otherwise she seemed okay. He dropped to his knees in front of her and took her face into his hands.

"Hurt?"

"Barely." She replied, slapping some medigel onto the cut across her cheek and groaning as she stood up. Garrus steadied her, leaving his hands on her waist longer than needed.

Shepard looked up into his worried eyes and smiled. "Hey, handsome." She greeted, lazy drawl to her voice, and Garrus dipped his head to rub his face against hers briefly.

"Don't scare me like that. I thought you were bear-thingy food."

She laughed, slapping at his arm. "Takes more than one gigantic monster to put me out, you should know that." She teased, and they moved back to where Jack was watching them and making retching sounds and Jackson was staring in surprise.

"You… you killed it!" he exclaimed, then let out a whoop.

"Yeah, that's what we do." Jack deadpanned, and Garrus bent over to help Jackson up, putting one of his arms over his shoulders.

"Shepard, come give me a hand with this guy."

Together they lifted him off his feet, and the four trekked deeper into the trees toward the survivor's camp.

"How long ago did you have to land?" Shepard asked as they slowly made their way through the underbrush.

"Um, two days ago. Had a system malfunction, I don't know any more than that. They announced over the com that we needed to make an emergency landing and that a suitable planet was nearby. They said we'd land, set up a base camp and send out a distress signal. Commander said we'd be home for dinner." He groaned as his leg bumped a tree stump. "Then we landed, got off of the ship, and the commander's head got torn off by one of those things. XO's in charge now. He's a good guy, but none of us know what to do."

Shepard nodded thoughtfully. "How many survivors?"

"Initially? I'd say around twenty, maybe twenty five. Now? I think there might be around a dozen of us. Mostly the soldiers sent to help protect the cargo." He said grimly, and Garrus frowned.

"And you."

"Yeah, and me. I'm tougher than I look." Another cry of pain as his leg dragged through some thick brush.

"There's the camp." He said through gritted teeth, and though the trees they could just make out a few tents and lean-to's that had been constructed crudely. A few men with assault rifles were standing among the trees, and they looked up in shock when Shepard and Garrus brought Jackson forward.

"Man, you're alive! I thought you were done for sure!"

"Yeah, these guys saved me, no thanks to you!"

"Hey, we had to leave you or we'd have all been eaten! Survival of the fittest, man!" a dark skinned officer teased, and Jackson sneered.

"So someone finally heard the distress signal," the other soldier said, stepping forward. "I'm Manning, this is Officer Grayson." He introduced.

"Commander Shepard of the Normandy, and this is Garrus Vakarian and Jack." She replied, and he blinked.

"Commander Shepard? _ The_ Commander Shepard? Oh man, no one is going to believe this!" Manning said, and Officer Grayson grinned.

"Come on, Jackson. Let's get that leg sorted out." He grabbed the injured man, put him over his shoulder in a fireman's carry, and headed off toward a stand of tents nearby.

Manning led them further into the camp, and Shepard turned to look at Garrus. He was staring over her shoulder in shock, and she frowned, waving a hand in front of his face.

"Garrus? What is it?" she turned, and her jaw dropped.

Standing ten feet away with a similarly shocked expression was none other than Kaidan Alenko.


	5. Chapter Five

**Anomaly Detected**

_**Chapter Five**_

*Note: I've picked out what planet they're on, after exhaustive research. I settled on Eingana, in the Omega Nebula, due to its proximity to the Omega 4 Relay, and the fact that the planet's description falls into line with what I've already described. Just go with it.*

"Commander Shepard."

His voice was reverent; a note of shock present, and Kaidan Alenko stepped forward as if in a dream. For the second time there she was, appearing at the moment he needed her most.

"Alenko." Shepard greeted coolly, arms folding across her chest in discomfort. Garrus wasted no time in stepping to her side, and his plates puffed just subtly inside his combat armor, mandibles close to his face in taut readiness, body preparing for a fight.

"Not that I'm ungrateful, but what are you doing here?" Kaidan asked, shifting his weight from foot to foot uncomfortably.

"Well, we just got done destroying a non-existent Collector ship through the Omega 4 Relay, also killing a half-finished non-existent human Reaper in order to save human colonies that definitely weren't disappearing because they were being kidnapped and processed into goop to make said human Reaper. After all that, Eingana here was just a hop, skip and a jump away, and while I was doing some mining, killing time before my evil, brainwashing employer contacted me, I picked up the signal. Why, wish I hadn't come?"

Kaidan tensed. "I said I wasn't ungrateful. If I had to hand-pick our rescuer it would be you. I'm just surprised to see you, that's all."

"Right. Well, here we are. Get your survivors together and we'll shuttle them up to the Normandy." Shepard said, clearly uncomfortable with the conversation.

"Why the hostility?" Kaidan demanded, stepping forward, "I apologized for what happened before, I was shocked to see you, and in the employ of Cerberus of all people. You died, and then all of a sudden there you were, like nothing ever happened, except someone forgot to tell_ me_ you weren't dead!"

Shepard snarled, "the first thing I asked when I got off of the Cerberus base that was exploding around me, once I was done fighting my way through hacked security mechs that were trying to kill me, was _'where is Kaidan Alenko'_. No one would tell me! I woke up at the mercy of my 'rescuers', and even when I went to the Citadel, Anderson wouldn't tell me a thing about where you were. I was stonewalled everywhere! All I wanted to do was find you, but I couldn't!"

Kaidan frowned. "I find it hard to believe that you couldn't find me if you really wanted to."

"Well it wasn't like I had hours upon hours every day to search the extranet for any mention of you. I was kind of trying to save humanity at the time as well."

"Right. The Collectors and Reapers." He stated, skeptical, "and now you want me to believe you went through the Omega 4 Relay, as well?"

"I don't care what you believe, Kaidan. I really don't, not any more. Am I rescuing you or not?" she demanded, voice heated and hands balled into fists at her sides.

"Jeeze Shepard, I sent you all those messages after Horizon, but you never responded, and now you're shocked that I'm a little upset?"

Garrus started, and turned toward Shepard in surprise. "He sent you messages? Why didn't you tell me?"

Shepard looked sheepish. "It wasn't important, I didn't even read them."

"Stay out of this, Garrus. It has nothing to do with you." Kaidan ground out, clearly annoyed at the interruption.

"Oh, it has plenty to do with me, Alenko." The Turian snarled, taking an angry step forward as his mandibles flared threateningly.

"What Shepard and I do or don't talk about is between her and me, there's no reason for you to butt in-"

"She's my_** mate**_!" Garrus roared, advancing forward another step with a growl.

Silence in the camp as people looked up from what they were doing all around. Kaidan was speechless; he just stared, slack-jawed at the furious Turian before him.

"M-mate?" he finally managed to stammer out, looking at Shepard in surprise.

"Yes, _mate_." Garrus answered for her, voice tight, and Shepard swallowed, working her jaw a bit. "What, you're surprised? Someone had to be there to pick up the pieces after Horizon. Shepard and I were always close."

"But… Jane, a _Turian_?" Kaidan was at a loss.

"Don't call me that." She spat. "You lost the right to call me by my first name after you completely wrote me off for taking help from the only people who would offer it. And yes, a Turian. Don't pull that racist bullshit with me. Garrus is twice the man you are."

Garrus grinned, putting a hand on Shepard's arm and giving a little squeeze in appreciation.

"What was I supposed to think? You know my own personal history with Cerberus. Hell, you know what they've done to countless people! You turned your back on the Alliance!"

"The Alliance turned its back on me! Cerberus brought me back to life, spent billions of credits doing it, and then gave me all the means necessary to save humanity. Haven't you ever heard the saying _'the enemy of my enemy is my friend'_? I was able to use Cerberus as a means to and end, and now more than ever I need their help. The Reapers are coming, Kaidan. The Alliance refuses to see it, same as the Citadel. I refuse to sit back and watch as all civilization is wiped out again, just like the Protheans. While there's something I can do about it, you can damn well bet that I'm going to fight back, even if it means accepting help from unsavory characters. I'll do what I have to do to get the job done. That's something I thought you would have understood." Shepard gasped, breathless after her tirade, and Kaidan looked furious.

"So the ends justify the means? How many jobs did you have to do for Cerberus that didn't have anything to do with saving the colonists? How many more skeletons are in your closet now, huh? Can't you see, they've got you reeled in tight, and you're never going to break free!"

"You're paranoid, Kaidan! Cerberus is the _only one_ that sees the threat. If they're willing to outfit me and my crew and help beat back the Reapers, I'll take whatever strings are attached. Don't you dare tell me I'm brainwashed, I'm fully aware of what I'm doing, what I'm condoning by allying myself with them. I haven't forgotten what they've done, Kaidan. I remember the Ascension Project. Hell, Jack here is living proof of the monstrous things they've done, and yet she was willing to come along and help."

"Heh, for a price." Jack scoffed, and Shepard shot her a dirty look, than continued.

"You abandoned me, Kaidan. You abandoned me emotionally. I finally found you, and I was so happy, and you turned your back on me."

"You turned your back on me first, Shepard!" he exclaimed, waving his arms in the air in frustration, "you died, and then suddenly I hear reports that you're bopping around the galaxy with a Cerberus logo on your clothes!"

"No one told me where to find you, Kaidan! I told you! I spent two years comatose in a Cerberus facility being rebuilt. Do you have any idea what was left of me after going through that planet's atmosphere? I was a burned lump of_ meat_, and they brought me back. I woke up to the entire building being blown to its foundation and countless hacked security mechs trying to kill me before I was even awake! I fought my way free, then hardly had a chance to catch my breath and I was on the trail of the Collectors, and I've been going non-stop ever since, but I still managed to have time to miss you, and wish I knew where you were, and lose sleep over my loneliness. But you didn't want to hear any of that, all you wanted to do was condemn me for using the tools that were available to save the _entire human race_!"

Kaidan was silent, and Shepard took a deep breath.

"Look, those monsters could attack again at any time, let me radio Joker, get him in close, we'll start shuttling survivors to the Normandy. You can tell me what a horrible person I am some more once we're on board and your crew is safe."

Kaidan nodded slowly, and as he turned Garrus reached out and grabbed him by the shoulder.

"Don't think you're getting off easy, Alenko," He hissed, "you weren't there after Horizon, you don't know how much damage you did, but I saw it all. I was there afterwards, and I will never forgive you for it. _This isn't over_." He growled, before roughly shoving the man backwards, then stalking away.

Shepard blinked. "Garrus, where are you going?" she called, concerned.

"To get the shuttle." He hissed, and strode from camp.


	6. Chapter Six

**Anomaly Detected**

_**Chapter Six**_

"That's the last of them, commander." Miranda stated as the shuttle docked and a few more people climbed out, "should I tell Joker to head toward the Citadel?"

Shepard nodded. "The sooner we drop them off, the better." She grumbled.

Dr. Chakwas was busy in the med bay, and Shepard decided to check on her progress with the injured Alliance members. She took the elevator up one floor, and stopped short.

It looked like Kaidan had beaten her to it. Shepard could see him in the med bay talking to Dr. Chakwas while she fixed up someone's arm. As she watched, Kaidan laughed and shook his head, making the doctor smile. In the background she could see Mordin patching up a young woman's head injury, and hoped that his knowledge of human anatomy was up to par.

Shepard looked around at the dozen or so new faces sitting at the mess hall tables and sighed, then headed toward the main battery.

Sure enough, Garrus was hiding away inside, fiddling with the console absently.

"Hey there, stranger." She greeted, and Garrus turned, smiling.

"Well hello, beautiful." He drawled, opening his arms in invitation. Shepard happily went to him, resting her cheek against his hard chest with a happy murmur.

"It's so busy out there," she complained, "so noisy."

Garrus grunted. "And then there's Alenko. I sure didn't see that coming."

"Me either," Shepard agreed. "It's so strange, seeing him again. He's changed so much."

"Yeah, and not for the better, either." Garrus snarled, and Shepard patted his shoulder.

"Easy, boy. He'll only be on board a few days and then we won't have to worry." She paused, than laughed. "I loved the look on his face when you told him about us, though. It was like someone just kicked his puppy."

Garrus blinked in confusion. "Translator glitched. Kicked his what?"

"Just a figure of speech, never mind." She dismissed with a wave of her hand, and Garrus shrugged.

"Kaidan sent a message to the Alliance a little while ago, told them what happened. I guess they were pretty surprised when he mentioned who his rescuers were. Should be interesting when we get to the Citadel." Shepard mused, and Garrus leaned down to nuzzle at her face.

"Mmmmhmmm…" he rumbled, and Shepard drew back to give him a reproachful look.

"You aren't listening to a word I'm saying, are you." It wasn't a question.

"Nope." Garrus agreed, then pulled her back against him again and resumed his nibbling on her neck.

"Ooh, not here, Garrus. Anyone could walk right in."

"Let them. I need to mark my territory again, anyway." He grinned rakishly, then lifted Shepard up and placed her on top of the console.

"Now, where to start…"

Just as he leaned in for a human-style kiss (something that was fast becoming a favorite of his), EDI's voice came over the com.

"Commander, I'm sorry to interrupt you and Officer Vakarian's… _conversation_, but you have an incoming message from Ambassador Anderson on the Citadel."

Shepard groaned and pushed Garrus back.

"Work, work, work…" she pouted, and hopped down from her perch.

"Hold that thought." She purred, then turned and headed for the briefing room.

"This had better be good."

XXX

"So you see, Shepard, the Alliance is willing to have you back, provided you sever all ties with Cerberus immediately. The council will re-instate your SPECTRE status as well." Anderson finished, and Shepard was silent.

"And the Reapers? Is the Alliance finally ready to accept that they are a threat? How about the council, do they still think I'm crazy?"

"The council is willing to discuss the perceived threat with you seriously and give it due consideration." He hedged, and Shepard frowned.

"Not good enough. If I'm going to split with Cerberus, I need to know that the council and the Alliance are both going to have my back one hundred percent. Otherwise we're all screwed."

Anderson sighed. "Look, Shepard. Having you, a former SPECTRE-and the first human one, I might add-working for a known terrorist organization like Cerberus is bad for humanity's image here at the Citadel. I know you think the Reapers are a true threat, but without solid proof-"

"Forget it. With all due respect sir, I don't give a damn about Citadel politics right now. Either you back me up against the Reapers, or we don't have anything more to talk about."

Anderson sighed.

"I'll talk to the council again, but-"

"Good, you do that. Now if you'll excuse me, I have a ship to run. Goodbye, ambassador."

And Shepard ended communications.

_The nerve of the council!_ Shepard was shaking in fury as she stormed back toward the elevator.

_So I save a wayward Alliance ship and all of a sudden they want me back? Well, it doesn't work that way. The council is never going to change, and the Alliance isn't much better. Too wrapped up in politics to see the bigger picture. I'll show them._

Shepard nodded firmly.

_I'll show them all._


	7. Chapter Seven

NOTE: In this chapter I use the space station Aite from the Overlord downloadable content. For those of you who have played this DLC, consider this story to take place well before that mission. Basically, it's just a normal Cerberus station right now. Later on it'll have the Overlord problem, but right now that's not going on. I needed a good Cerberus research facility and Aite fit the bill perfectly. 

**Anomaly Detected**

**Chapter Seven**

"I take it things didn't go so well?"

Shepard was in the middle of the cargo bay, squaring off against Grunt when Garrus finally found her. Now he leaned against the door jam and watched in amusement, arms crossed and mandibles quirked, as Grunt rushed Shepard, only for her pull a bull fighter's flourish and twirl to the side, well out of harms way.

"You could say that." The sweaty, irate woman growled over her shoulder as she tackled Grunt to the ground, pounding furiously against his tough plates.

"Don't hurt yourself, okay?" Garrus called, just as Shepard was flung through the air, landing with a muffled "oof" a few feet away.

"You maybe want to, I don't know, talk about it?" he asked in amusement as Shepard discovered why right hooks don't work so well against Krogans.

"Son of a-! Yeah, talking might be good. Less fracturing of my hand." She agreed, patting Grunt on the shoulder and thanking him.

"No problem, Shepard. Most fun I've had in weeks." He grinned, nodded in Garrus's direction and then left the cargo hold before things got mushy.

Shepard let out a long breath as she walked toward Garrus, hand reaching up to rub at her bad shoulder a bit unconsciously. Once she stood only a few feet away she stopped, cocked her hip, crossed her arms, and said simply:

"The council wants me back," a beat, "and the Alliance."

Garrus blinked in surprise. "Oh. That's…unexpected. Who-"

"Anderson," Shepard answered before he could finish asking, "and before you say anything, I told him no."

"Just "no"?" Garrus chuckled.

"Well, not quite "go fuck yourself", but pretty damn close." She conceded, and Garrus's throaty laugh filled the room.

"That sounds about right," he agreed, than reached out one talon to push some of her hair over one ear, "you okay?"

Shepard smiled at his concern, and moved a little closer.

"Maybe after some special attention from a certain Turian, I will be." She mused, and Garrus grinned.

"Here? Or should I "attention" you somewhere more private?"

"Upstairs. Now."

"Yes, ma'am."

XXXX

"I don't give a damn about your excuses, Alenko. You told Alliance officials that me and my crew rescued you and yours, and not an hour later humanity's goddamn _ambassador_ hails me and wants to make nice after disowning me less than a year ago. Yeah, I'm going to suspect you had something to do with it."

Shepard and Kaidan were squared off outside of the med bay, and were attracting quite the audience.

"Look, I thought if the Alliance would take you back, maybe you'd stop with the Cerberus stuff. Anderson's still my best link to them. I didn't think he'd get the council involved. I was just trying to help!"

"I don't need your help. Or theirs."

"_Commander_," came Joker's voice, "_Illusive Man wants a word. Says it's urgent. Sounded pretty impatient_," then mumbled, "_the asshole_."

Shepard threw her hands up into the air with a growl.

"I pick you up and my day suddenly gets mighty full of interesting, Alenko." She snarled, then turned on her heel and stalked toward the elevators.

XXXX

"Hear you picked up some extra baggage," Was the Illusive Man's greeting, and Shepard sneered as he continued, "but now I have a job for you to do. Blue Suns attacked one of our research facilities, Aite. They're after some valuable files we've recently come into the possession of and were in the process of analyzing. It's critical that the information doesn't leak, it's too valuable as a relative secret."

"And where do Reapers or Collectors come in?" Shepard asked plainly.

"Pardon?"

"I fail to see what this has to do with me. At all."

"Come now, Shepard. You had no problem helping out before."

"That was then. I think we're finished with our business together, aren't we?"

"The Reapers are still a threat. As far as I'm concerned, our business isn't finished until that threat has been neutralized."

Shepard scowled.

"Now, I've already sent coordinates and all pertinent information. This is critical, Shepard. I need you to do this immediately."

"A "please" and "thank you" would be nice." She grumbled, and he ignored her, continuing.

"You aren't going to be able to drop off your… cargo before hand. I need you to go straight there." 

"Oooh no."

"I'm sorry?"

"No, no, no. I am not having _Alliance_ personnel along on a _Cerberus_ job. Are you insane?"

"Space them or bring them, Shepard, you don't have time to play chauffer." The Illusive Man spat, and Shepard winced.

"Fine."

And then, just like a petulant child, she stormed away, effectively ending communications.

XXXX

"_Attention Normandy Crew. I need my shore party to the briefing room_." Shepard said over the com, than waited. Slowly people began trickling in, curious expressions on their faces. Once everyone had arrived (including, to her consternation, Kaidan), she began to talk.

"Look, just talked to the Illusive Man, we have an urgent job to do."

"I thought we were done with that dickhead." Jack called, causing Miranda to jump up from her seat and whip around, fixing the biotic with a furious glare.

"So did I. Apparently not. Blue Suns are attacking at Aite, trying to get some data or something. Illusive Man says it's critical, so let's get in, do it and get paid."

"This is all after you drop me and my crew off, right?" Kaidan asked, hand raised.

"That would be a negative. You get to ride along, I guess."

"Great. Well, maybe I can follow you in. You know, for old time's sake." He offered.

"You want to help on a _Cerberus_ job?" Shepard arched an eyebrow.

"No, I want to watch your six. How about it?"

Shepard affected a thoughtful expression. Kaidan and his biotics were invaluable in the field, and not bringing Jack along would be a plus. She'd just bitch about Cerberus the whole time, anyway.

"Sure, why not."

Garrus's head snapped toward her and he met Shepard's gaze with a shocked expression.

"Really?" Kaidan asked, surprised at her easy agreement.

"Why not, I know what you can do; your help would be more than welcome." She said amicably enough, but inside her stomach was churning and the mantra _"what the fuck are you thinking"_ kept running through her head.

"Garrus, Kaidan, suit up. We aren't too far. Joker, what's our ETA?"

"_Two hours, commander_." The pilot replied over the com, and Shepard nodded.

"You heard the man."

And with that, the room cleared out. Kaidan stayed behind until he saw the look on the Turian vigilante's face. He quickly changed his mind and left the room.

This left Shepard and Garrus alone.

"So… bringing the ex along… didn't think maybe we should talk about that first?" Garrus ambled toward the commander, putting his hands on her waist. "Are you out of your mind?"

Shepard winced. "I'm sorry, Garrus. Really. I wasn't thinking about what all bringing him along entailed. Is it going to be too awkward?" she gently cupped his cheek, stroking her thumb along his mandible, and Garrus puffed up a bit, purring.

"No, it's fine… just keep doing that." He murmured, and Shepard laughed, than leaned up to press her lips to his.

"Mmmm, we have two hours, after all." She lilted into his neck, and Garrus beamed.

"Two hours, indeed."


	8. Chapter Eight

Anomaly Detected

Chapter Eight

"_Docking with the station, commander."_

Shepard glanced up as Joker's voice came over the com and hurriedly continued pulling her clothes back on, picking up discarded garments that were scattered across the floor of her cabin.

"I told you we didn't have long enough to do it one more time." Shepard grumbled, to which Garrus rolled his eyes (a human gesture he had picked up recently).

"Yeah, but you weren't complaining after I flipped you over and-"

"Shut up, Turian." She growled, throwing his shirt at his head. It caught on his right mandible and dangled off of his face, a comic expression on his features that made Shepard laugh out loud.

Collapsing on the bed in a fit of giggles, she almost didn't hear EDI's voice.

"_Commander, Kaidan Alenko is ready and waiting to board the research facility."_ She reminded, and Shepard groaned and sat up, pulling on her boots.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. We'll be right there."

Garrus, completely clothed, headed for the door.

"I'm going to go get my combat armor on. Meet you there."

The thought of Garrus and Kaidan alone together for more than a few seconds made Shepard rush through the rest of the dressing process, and when she finally emerged from the armory ten minutes later she found the two men standing several feet apart, uncomfortably silent.

"Right, let's do this." She chirped, trying to ease some of the tension.

The airlock hissed and they stepped out of the Normandy and into the facility, guns drawn.

XXXX

"So, just curious… doesn't it cause problems for the two of you to be in the field together? Aren't you worried Garrus will be distracted?" Kaidan asked over the radio as the three of them walked through an empty hallway, stepping over a few bodies.

Before Shepard could answer, Garrus was speaking.

"That's why before every mission Shepard and I go up to her cabin and-"

"Garrus!" she hissed, and he wisely fell silent.

A moment or two of silence, and then:

"A lot. Over and over again."

"**Garrus Vakarian**!"

"And she screams and begs for more."

"You are_ so_ sleeping on the couch tonight, asshole."

Shepard's face was bright red under her helmet, and Garrus laughed.

"Aww, Kaidan doesn't mind. Do you, Kaidan?" 

The man in question cringed, but kept quiet.

"That's what I thought."

XXXX

"Why haven't we run into anyone yet?" Kaidan mused out loud as they moved into another area. "I thought Blue Suns were in here."

Shepard shrugged. "Maybe they already left?"

Garrus pressed a keypad and a door swung open. They stepped through and heard footsteps ahead.

Shepard raised a hand, signaling them to fall silent and still. After a few moments she waved Kaidan forward, and the three advanced into a small room. Before them was a merc, working furiously on a computer consol.

"Freeze." Shepard hissed, and the man jumped, then whipped around. Garrus easily put a bullet in him, and Shepard stepped forward.

"Let's see what he was doing…" she murmured as Garrus walked toward the door on the far wall, Kaidan at his heels.

"Back off, Alenko." Garrus hissed.

"Make me." Kaidan growled back.

"Ohhh shit."

Shepard turned and got two steps away before the bomb the merc had just set and she had just accidently triggered went off in a terrific explosion that rocked the entire room. Shepard was thrown through the air and landed hard against the far wall, shielding her head with her arms as debris rained down around her, the noise cacophonous in the small area.

Once the dust had settled she lifted her head and looked around her. The room was in shambles, chunks of metal from the ceiling were all over the floor, including one large piece that had landed less than half a foot from where she'd been huddled.

Other than her and the debris, she was alone.

"Garrus? Kaidan?"

"I'm okay." Garrus said over the radio. "Nice work, honey."

"Kaidan?"

"Owwww," he grumbled, "I'm with the Turian. I don't think we're going back the way we came any time soon. Where are you, Shepard?"

She frowned and looked around.

"Trapped."

XXXX

"I'm not leaving you, Jane."

"This isn't up for discussion, Garrus. You and Kaidan need to find the data for the Illusive Man. Then we can worry about getting me out of here."

"No. Kaidan can look. I'm going to try breaking through and getting to you."

"Garrus-"

"Don't argue. I'm the most likely one to get through the rubble. I'm strong enough. I'm not leaving you; you'll just have to court martial me for insubordination later."

Shepard rolled her eyes.

"Kaidan, can you keep going alone?"

"Sure thing, Shepard. I'll find the data and then help Garrus get you free."

"Right, good luck."

Kaidan looked at Garrus for a moment, the two men staring each other down, before the human huffed, turned on his heel, and set off down the so far unexplored hallway.

"So Shepard," Garrus grunted, and she could hear the squeal of metal shifting, "how does it feel to be the damsel in distress?"

Shepard laughed and crawled over to where Garrus was trying to break through.

"Where did you pick up that term?" she asked, giving a tug on a large metal beam and shaking her head. It wasn't going anywhere.

Some more grunting, then a crash.

"Didn't you know? Sometimes I read human fairy tales to help me get to sleep at night." He teased.

"Of course you do, Garrus. Well, now you get to be Prince Charming and rescue me. Get to work."

XXXX

Kaidan barely listened to Shepard and Garrus talking over the radio. He was focused completely on finding the data for Shepard, hoping that doing so would endear him to her a bit.

_This whole thing with Garrus, it has to be mostly rebellion. Hell, maybe they're just making it up to get to me. I can't imagine how that kind of a relationship would even work. Aren't humans… allergic to Turians? We can't even eat the same food, for crying out loud!_

He kept his gun raised as he mused to himself and systematically checked every room he came upon. Besides damaged machines, dead bodies and blood he didn't find anything. Ducking into yet another room, he found this one to be some sort of lab. Giving it a scan he was about to turn and leave when he heard a groan. He rushed to the back of the room and there, lying behind a table, was a man in a lab coat clutching a rather grotesque stomach wound.

"What happened?" Kaidan demanded, and the man sputtered a bit, watching with bleary eyes as Kaiden prepared some medigel. He knew he was beyond saving, but the gel would help numb the pain, at least, and he looked forward to its application.

"Blue Suns. They're after the schematics. Came in disguised as a shipping frigate bringing supplies and caught us completely off guard."

Kaidan nodded and applied the medigel with his omni tool.

"We're here to get the schematics to safety. Where are they?"

The man looked at Kaidan carefully, and then slowly nodded. "He sent you."

"Who?"

"The Illusive Man."

"Oh," Kaidan murmured, "yes. Well, not me, he sent the commander. She's… busy."

The man coughed. "It's in the east wing. Under security locks, you'll need the code to get through."

"What's the code?"

"I don't know, I'm just a researcher." The man rasped.

"Of course. Look, I'm going to find the data, you just… hold on, and we'll come back for you."

"Don't bother, I'm not going to last much longer." The man said simply. "Just get that data before the mercs do."

Kaidan nodded, jaw clenched as he looked down at the dying man. There was nothing he could do, but it was still difficult to leave him. Deciding that there really wasn't much more to say, he simply patted the man on the shoulder, then got up and left quickly.

He made it out the door, than whipped around at the sound of movement behind him. In the hall were four mercs, two Turians and two humans. One of the Turians stepped forward.

"Thanks for getting that info for us, kid." He said simply, and then waved a human and Turian forward, weapons raised.

As Kaidan prepared to push them, he saw the other two Blue Suns mercs take off down the hall, presumably toward the east wing.

"Damn it." He hissed, then let loose with his biotics, throwing the two men down the hall, where they knocked down the other two mercs as well. Quickly he got out his pistol and began firing.

_Oh boy, this is going to be fun._

XXXX

"I'm making good progress Shepard. I'll have you out of there in no time, and then we can wait for Alenko to find the data. How about a cuddle?"

"You're just full of it today, aren't you?" Shepard mused, watching the rubble shift and groan. "Kaidan is risking a lot right now, you know."

"Oh yeah. He's going to go find a little data disc all alone. Poor guy." Garrus gave a mighty tug on a piece of steel plating and fell backwards as it loosened and came free.

"I just hope he doesn't run into too many mercs."

XXXX

Kaidan groaned, panting. The four mercs lay dead, two leaking red and two leaking blue, and he gave his head a little shake.

Stepping over the bodies, he continued down the hall and through another door. A sign on the wall said "east wing" and an arrow pointed to the left. He quickly turned down the hall and nearly ran right into another person.

"Hey! Watch it!"

A short blonde woman dusted herself off, and Kaidan blinked at her stupidly.

"Who are you?" 

"You don't look like Blue Suns." She replied.

"I'm not. I'm here to recover the data for the," he scowled, "Illusive Man."

"You don't look like Cerberus, either." She frowned, eyebrow arched.

"I'm not. I'm with Commander Shepard. She is."

"Ah. And do you have a name?" she smirked.

"I believe I asked you first." He shot back, and she laughed.

"Right, you win. I'm Maria Thomas. Doctor Maria Thomas. I'm one of the project leads."

Kaidan took her in. She was tiny, wearing a white lab coat that was liberally splattered with blood, and she had a combat shotgun under one arm. Clearly she meant business.

"Kaidan Alenko." He offered, and she seemed to accept his brief introduction.

"There were a few mercs down here," she waved with her gun down the hall, "but I took care of them. I've been trying to keep them off the data until reinforcements arrived. And here you are. Let's get the data and get out of here."

Kaidan nodded, and together they rushed down the hall and to another door, this one sealed.

"Don't look." She said, and Kaidan rolled his eyes. This was no time to be concerned about the security code leaking, but he kept his mouth shut and turned his head.

A few beeps and she patted his arm. "Okay, let's get it."

They entered the room together, and Kaidan looked around. It was small, and filled with computers and holo screens. In the center of the room was a very large consol, and Dr. Thomas was there, punching some keys rapidly. Kaidan made his way over to her side just in time to see the schematics pop up on screen. And he froze.

Turning on his radio, he spoke quietly, deadly serious.

"Shepard. We have a problem."


	9. Chapter Nine

**Anomaly Detected**

_**Chapter Nine**_

_Garrus Vakarian, mate-rescuing extraordinaire._ The sturdy Turian thought as he threw aside a key piece of rubble.

As expected, the mound shifted, and light shone through the top. He grinned and started climbing up.

Shepard heard the sound of debris groaning, then a tumbling sound, followed by some curses her translator couldn't quite work out.

"Garrus?"

"Y-yeah?" came a slightly breathless reply.

"Everything okay?"

"Of course honey, I-"

He was cut off by Kaidan's voice.

"Shepard, we have a problem."

Garrus rolled his eyes.

"What is it?" she asked over the radio just as she saw a handsome Turian head poke through the gap in the debris. She grinned, "did you find the data?"

"Yes." Was the clipped reply.

"Good, get back here, then."

"No."

Shepard frowned. "I'm sorry, the radio must have glitched. I thought I heard you disobey an order." She hissed, and Garrus snorted.

"This data is stolen." Kaidan stated, distaste in his voice.

Shepard shook her head in annoyance. "I know that. Their loss, blah, blah blah."

"Stolen from the Alliance."

Oh shit.

"Really?" did her voice sound unusually high pitched to anyone else?

"This is big, Shepard. This makes the Thanix Cannon look like a water pistol. In the wrong hands… Shepard, this thing could wipe out a small planet if it got enough shots in." Kaidan's voice sounded disgusted and afraid, and Shepard's brow furrowed.

"No one should have that kind of power." She mused.

"We need to give this back, Shepard. If this is the original data disc, the alliance has nothing, and Cerberus _can't_ have this."

"Cerberus has made copies by now, I'm sure. Taking it won't stop them." Shepard reasoned as she watched Garrus shimmy the rest of the way through, then tumble down the pile of debris.

"All the more reason to give it back to the Alliance. They can counter Cerberus if they have the same advantages."

"Right, so two groups can be running around the galaxy vaporizing planets. No way."

"Shepard-"

"Kaidan-"

"Destroy it all." Garrus's voice overpowered theirs.

The radio was silent for a moment or two.

"Look, destroy the disc and wipe the systems. Then no one has it." He reasoned.

"That would take significant tech abilities-" Kaidan began, but was interrupted by Shepard and Garrus's simultaneous:

"Legion."

XXXX

"Shepard-Commander, I have successfully penetrated Aite's security protocols. Should I begin removing all pertinent data from the network?"

Legion stood with Kaidan, Shepard and Garrus in then main control room, the way clear after Zaeed and Grunt played with some controlled explosives. Doctor Thomas had been (a bit forcefully) escorted to the Normandy after repeated attempts at stopping Legion from hacking into the system. As far as Shepard knew, she was locked in one of the rooms of the lower decks crying about "her life's work".

"Do it, Legion." Shepard said with a nod.

Kaidan just stared at Shepard, unbelieving.

"A Geth?"

She looked at him coolly.

"Yes."

Kaidan looked disappointed and revolted simultaneously. It was not a pretty expression.

"If I'd have known it was on board…"

"What, you would have told us to leave you and your crew on Eingana?" she laughed, and Garrus gave a forlorn sigh.

"If I had known it would be that easy, I'd have made the introduction before they boarded." He grumbled, and Kaidan ground his teeth.

"That's it. I've had enough of this, Vakarian." Kaidan began to glow blue, and just as he raised his hands to deliver a '_push_', Garrus calmly stepped forward and delivered an impressive right hook right into Kaidan's shocked face.

The biotic went down hard, and Garrus preened a bit, studying the backs of his talons with a smirk.

"I've wanted to do_ that_ for quite a while."

Shepard hid her laugh behind her hand as Kaidan sat up, rubbing his jaw.

"Cool it, Alenko." She warned, and he nodded.

"Okay, okay. I know I've been acting like a jerk," he said, looking up at Garrus, "but if you lost her, wouldn't you do the same?"

Garrus looked over at Shepard, at her dusty, dinged up combat armor, her mussed hair, wet with sweat, her smudged face, her shining eyes, and sighed.

Extending one taloned hand, he helped Kaidan to his feet.

"This doesn't mean we're friends." He warned, and Kaidan smiled.

"Of course not." He assured.

XXXX

Don't worry, it isn't over yet. We still have a few chapters left.


	10. Chapter Ten

**Note:** Sorry for the delay in updating, I was sick for a week, and then out of town for another week…

**Warning:** With this chapter we move up to the 'M' rating. You have been warned! Things get a bit citrus-y in here!

**Anomaly Detected**

_Chapter Ten_

"Am I fired?"

Shepard stood in the briefing room, hands behind her back and a small smirk on her lips as she addressed the Illusive Man. It had been only a few hours since they'd wiped the Alliance data from the systems on Aite, and she was eager to get the worst part over.

"Shepard, when all this Reaper business is over, I am going to be more than happy to fire you. Excessively." The Illusive Man ground out, flicking his cigarette in irritation.

"Promises, promises." Shepard grumbled, rolling her eyes and shifting her weight impatiently from foot to foot. "Did you need to send me on any other silly errands, or can I get back to business?"

"We're done. I'll be in touch."

"Great."

The hologram faded and the lights came back up in the room slowly. Shepard rolled her bad shoulder, cracked her neck a bit, then turned and headed to the bridge.

"Commander, you've received a new message at your private terminal." Kelly interrupted as Shepard walked past, and she stopped.

Check it now?

Why the hell not.

She stepped over to the terminal and logged into the extranet with practiced ease, then accessed her messages.

_Genial greeting- hello fellow life form. ___

With empathetic embarrassment- An opposite-gendered member of your species has informed us that you were found to be lacking athletically, intellectually, socially, genetically, sexually, hygienically, and anatomically.

Reassuringly- however, there is no need for a crippling mental breakdown or the voluntary elimination of your own life. By a simple process it is possible to cure any and all character traits deemed to be unsatisfactory.

Sincere enthusiasm- simply use the extranet keyword 'Substandard being' and you will instantly have a direct credit deposit link set up with a team of skilled members of your race who will return you to a pinnacle of vitality, the envy of all that may or may not view you.  


_Hopefully- we eagerly await your pending correspondence._

_Emotional salutation,  
The Elcor Philanthropic Society. _

Shepard blinked.

Then blinked again.

Then clicked "forward", and in the recipient field, typed "Illusive Man". 

XXX

"Joker says we won't be docking with the Citadel for another hour and a half at least." Was Shepard's greeting to Garrus once the door to the main battery hissed open.

The Turian turned, confusion on his face for only a brief moment before he caught sight of the commander. Was her top unzipped a bit further than usual? Yes, he could definitely see more of her breasts, and her hair was down, falling around her shoulders. She only let her hair down when she was bathing, or when they… - Ohhhh…

"Hour and a half, huh?" Garrus drawled as he sauntered toward the human in the doorway. "You sure that's enough time?"

Shepard grinned. "It'll have to be." She purred, reaching out to run her fingers along his fringe with a seductive wink.

"Ooohhh… you're bad," he growled, and grabbing Shepard by the waist, he lifted her up and placed her on top of the consol that he'd been using to calibrate only moments before.

She gave a little "ooof!", and looked up at Garrus with an arched eyebrow.

"A little eager, are we?"

His reply was lost in the sound of tearing fabric as he pulled her clothes away with a few well placed tugs. Then he was disrobing, and Shepard was watching in amusement.

"Hey, tiger, slow down a little!" she sat up and grabbed his hands, pulling them away from the fastenings to his tunic that he had been wrestling with.

Their eyes met, and Garrus felt his lower plates shift subtly.

"Let me help." She whispered, and began to work his shirt off slowly, eyes never leaving his.

"Shepard…" he murmured, one hand reaching up to slowly run his talons through her hair.

"How locked is the door?" she drawled as she pushed the shirt off of his shoulders, and Garrus froze.

"Uh, a whole lot of 'not'." He said, voice rough as Shepard started working on the fastenings to his pants.

"Mm, good." She murmured, giving him a saucy wink.

He balked.

"Um, maybe you didn't hear me. I said not. As in the door is unlocked."

"Right." She agreed, pulling the unbuttoned pants down his legs calmly.

"As in, anyone could walk in and catch us."

"That is the truth-fact." She said simply, then grabbed Garrus by the shoulders and exerted enough forward force that she was able to launch against him and slam him into the adjacent wall.

Before he could protest she was on her knees before him, and damn if his lower plates didn't finish shifting quite rapidly.

"Oooh, for me?" she teased, and Garrus groaned, rolling his eyes.

"Shepard, come on. This is just a really, really bad-oooohhhh!"

"You were saying?"

He blinked rapidly. "I thought Mordin said you couldn't-"

"Anti-histamine shot fifteen minutes ago. Get comfortable, cowboy. You're going for one hell of a ride."

And then his head hit the wall with a thunderous bang as her mouth found him again.

"Spirits, Shepard!" he growled, fisting her hair in one hand tightly. Shepard ignored the sting of his talons digging into her scalp, and instead carefully slid him deeper into her mouth, letting her tongue flutter just so.

A very non-human sound filled the room.

"Shepard, stop!" he exclaimed, pulling her mouth from him with an audible "pop" and staring down at her, mandibles flared wide in an expression of shock.

"What's wrong?" she asked, moving toward him again, "did you not like it?"

He scooped her up with a growl, put her back onto the consol, grabbed her by the thighs and with one mighty pull, yanked her hard against him, filling her in one long thrust.

"Garrus!" she squealed in surprised delight, and she grabbed his cowl tightly in her hands and held on as he began to make vigorous love to her.

His hands dug into her hips as he rolled her against him, and his head lowered to her shoulder. Shepard braced herself, and moments later felt the heady sting of his teeth digging into that fleshy place where shoulder and neck meet. Her cry of pleasure echoed in the small room, ringing in Garrus's ears.

He grinned.

XXX

Kaidan was feeling a bit reluctant to leave. As strange as it sounded, he was actually growing to like the new Normandy, and although things were awkward between him and Shepard… and Garrus… well, maybe it could all work out.

At the moment he was making the rounds, saying his goodbyes to Tali, Joker, and Doctor Chakwas. In fact, she was just the person he was on the way to see.

He'd passed Mess Sergeant Gardener's station when he heard it.

A loud "bang", followed by an inhuman snarling.

Kaiaen froze, eyes widening in horror.

_Varren! Or-or angry Blue Suns Mercs that snuck on board when we were docked at Aite!_

When he heard a human squeal, he rushed toward the sound, going down the hall toward the main battery.

_Maybe I should call for some back up, who knows what I'm going to find in there-_

The door whooshed open and Kaidan's jaw dropped.

Well, at least he knew where the sounds were coming from now.

"Garrus, harder!" Shepard cried, clawing at the plates on his shoulders, legs squeezing tightly around his small waist.

The Turian acquiesced, driving himself into her with deep and powerful thrusts, an almost constant hum of a growl deep in his chest. As Kaidan watched, he sunk his teeth into Shepard's shoulder, and she howled in ecstasy, flailing against him in euphoric release.

Garrus threw his head back, mandibles flared wide and bellowed as he drove in once more and fell still inside of her.

And then he looked down, and saw Shepard's expression.

One of abject horror.

Her mouth worked, but no sound came out for several moments, before finally she was able to get out a squeak.

"_Kaidan_?"

XXX

Much thanks to my brother for providing 90% of the message Shepard received on her terminal. Excessive amusement- Elcor are the greatest ever!


	11. Chapter Eleven

Disclaimer: This is me still not owning Mass Effect. Shucks.

Notes: Holy delay of gratification, Batman! Has it really been eight months since I last updated this story? **PROFUSE APOLOGIES!** Kind of lost any and all desire to write for a long stretch there, and that lack of inspiration coupled with my anxiety over having the perfect ending to this story was enough to make me _very_ late with this update. Hopefully you can all forgive me after reading this chapter.

And yes, this is the end of our tale. I'm sure I'll write more Garrus/Shepard in the future though, so take heart!

As always, please let me know what you think, even just a sentence or two verifying that you did in fact read this and that no, it was not trash would really make my day!

By the way, why didn't anyone _tell_ me I was spelling Kaidan's name wrong? Oh well, I'll go back and edit previous chapters to fix it. Oops.

Without further ado…

**Anomaly Detected**

_Chapter 11_  
_Endgame_

"Can he stand?"  
"Give him some room to breathe!"  
"Jesus Shepard, you guys seriously couldn't keep in it your pants long enough to lock the door?"  
"…Shut the fuck up, Joker."

Several people were crowded around a semi-unconscious Kaidan Alenko, including a hastily-dressed Shepard and Garrus. Dr. Chakwas knelt at the side of the fallen biotic, patting his cheek firmly. Kaidan was groggily starting to come to, when he let out an inarticulate bellow of sheer horror and began to flail around spastically.

"Alenko!" Dr. Chakwas said, raising her voice over his sniveling. "Alenko, calm down!"

He slowly went still, then looked up, blinking rapidly.

He saw Shepard and Garrus standing side by side, looking down at him with concerned and amused expressions, and his face promptly started to turn purple.

"You! And-and… naked-!"

"Easy now," Dr. Chakwas soothed, doing her best to stifle a smirk, "you've had a bit of a shock-"

"-and then squealed and fainted like a little girl-" Joker interjected, resulting in Shepard's elbow in his ribs,

"-but you're fine." Dr. Chakwas finished, shooting Joker a dirty look.

"Bit of a shock?" Kaidan demanded, sitting up quickly and struggling to his feet, "I just saw Shepard and Garrus Vakarian all-all _naked_ and _sex_-like!"

Shepard snorted as Garrus whispered in her ear something about "raging hard-ons, lack of blood to the brain and losing consciousness, and Kaidan seethed.

"How is no one else bothered by this?" he demanded, and Jack rolled her eyes.

"Seriously, we've all caught them fucking at some point – get over it."

Several people nodded solemnly, recalling their own _"holy shit interspecies sexings!"_ moment, facing paling or flushing depending on their enjoyment (or lack thereof) of the surprise.

EDI's voice, which Shepard had to remind herself was unable to sound reproachful, came over the intercom.

"_All crew must take their places for docking procedures with the Citadel at this time."_

Everyone shuffled off, having a job to do, and Kaidan sighed, rethinking his previous reluctance to leave the new Normandy – if catching his nymphomaniac ex-girlfriend having very vigorous sex with her alien lover was a regular occurrence around here, well… maybe it was best he not be around.

Once was _so_ enough.

XXXX

"So, I guess this is goodbye, then."

Shepard, Garrus and Kaidan stood outside the Normandy, looking everywhere but at each other.

Kaidan looked up at Shepard as she spoke, and nodded.

"I guess so." He replied, hands deep in his pockets.

"Look, I-"

"Kaidan-"

They shared a rueful smile, and Kaidan dipped his head toward Shepard, inviting her to go first.

"I just… I wanted to say that I'm glad we got to see each other again… get things, I don't know, cleared up a bit? Despite the big ass pile of trouble you caused me." She smirked, and Kaidan chuckled.

"I'm glad too. Look, on Aite… you made the right call, Shepard. I didn't want to admit it at the time, but it's true. And I'm… sorry for doubting you. Not just then, but before, on Horizon… I had no right to accuse you of being a traitor, no right to treat you that way…" he turned to Garrus,

"And I'm not going to pretend that I'm not jealous, or… bothered… or anything like that, but it's obvious that you care about her, so just… take care of her, alright?"

Garrus nodded, than held out his hand. "Alenko… well, I guess… I guess you aren't a _total_ fuck up." He allowed, and Shepard allowed a single bark of laughter to escape before slapping her hands over her mouth.

Kaidan snorted, and shook Garrus's hand, smirking as he replied

"Thanks Garrus. I suppose you aren't a completely arrogant prick, now that I think about it."

In that moment, their eyes met, and an agreement of mutual respect passed through their gazes. For all their differences, their mutual love for Shepard was enough to forge a truce between them. As quickly as it occurred, the moment passed, and the two men dropped hands, both studiously avoiding further eye contact.

"Give my best to Anderson." Shepard said, and Kaidan nodded.

"Keep in touch?" he looked at her hopefully, and Shepard thought about it for a moment, and then smiled.

"You bet Kaidan. You bet."

Garrus's hand found Shepard's as they watched Kaidan Alenko walk away, and they both knew that, for good or ill, their lives would never be the same. Somehow, this strange journey they had all taken together had fostered not only forgiveness, but hope. Hope for a day when the galaxy would be free from threat, and a complicated universe could resolve itself to the more important things; friendship, happiness, and love.


End file.
